tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1350899232375220232024-03-10T14:12:31.499-07:00Pine Needle Farm Cashmeres' BlogAnn Keenanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12298587401555306348noreply@blogger.comBlogger172125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-135089923237522023.post-37929804823752581842024-03-10T14:11:00.000-07:002024-03-10T14:11:44.145-07:00Randomness<p> Is that a word? Anyway, no pictures today, just rambling. Little Jan is doing great, even if she is by herself with nobody to play with except mom. Two months old now. Seems totally normal. Cute little girl with her mouse ears. Next doe due to kid isn't until around April 5th, give or take a day or two. There are only 4 cashmere does pregnant out there this year. Toffee, the dairy doe is due the end of April. Iris, one of the pregnant cashmere girls is due close to my birthday, so I've been talking to her about having her kids on my birthday. :-) I'm hoping she has a boy and a girl. If she does have a boy, I'm keeping him a buck, if he looks good. She has excellent fleece, and she's also the only badger colored doe I've ever had. So a badger colored buck would be pretty cool.</p><p><br /></p><p>Things totally off topic of the farm. This time change thing needs to be done away with. It doesn't change the amount of daylight hours in a 24 hour period. The animals don't go by a clock, so this throws them off a bit, too. Animals are very much creatures of habit, more so than humans even. They don't really enjoy having their schedules messed with. They adapt to changes, but it takes a bit. Especially the dairy goats. I went out a half hour earlier this morning (according to our clocks) and didn't get quite as much milk as normal. It was nice on the cashmere side, they weren't all standing around waiting to be fed since I was early, so it was easier to start throwing hay out for them. Of course when they saw the hay, they came a running, but at least the first minute or two was easier. :-) </p><p><br /></p><p>Skippy ate something he shouldn't have and did not feel good yesterday. I fasted him all day, and this morning John took him for a hike around the upper half of our place. He had some serious diarrhea but felt much better. Back to his normal bouncy self. Hopefully he passes whatever it was that was clogging him up. He gets into everything out there. When the snow melts I am going to have quite a mess to clean up in the yard. I got spoiled having Rocky and Cloud in with the goats all the time for 9 years. No destruction of the place. Skippy is everywhere but in the goat pens, except at feeding times, or when I go in there for something. He has a game he plays with three of the does, it's kind of like watching a cutting horse work the cows. They chase him and he dodges them. He also runs the gauntlet going out the hay door and through the herd waiting for their hay. He's getting pretty good at dodging the horns as he runs through. After he gets out into the pen, then he just goes around following his nose to see what all is out there. He does have to watch out for the three goats that go after him. He's been nailed a few times. </p><p>He is the quietest dog we've had. He doesn't yelp at all, even when getting nailed by the goats. The only time he barks is when the neighbor dogs are barking at something. He doesn't bark when someone comes here, though. I do hope that changes as he gets older! He's 8 months old now. He's a big boy. It will be interesting to see how big he ends up being.</p><p><br /></p><p>I have a "Christmas" cactus that is still blooming. It started around Thanksgiving and is blooming on all the holidays till Easter it looks like. It covers all the holidays. After being repotted it has taken off, tripling in size. It's outgrowing the window it's in. It likes its new pot!</p><p><br /></p><p>Yesterday it got all the way up to 50 degrees, with sunshine. The warmest day of the year so far. Melted some of the snow. Today is cloudy and cooler with a breeze and a few snowflakes, so the snow isn't melting as fast. I'm in the middle of combing the goats. Deciding who I'm going to keep and who gets to go to a new home or off to freezer camp. Some of them will be easy. I'm to the age where if I can't handle them easily, I don't want to deal with them anymore. There are two for sure that will be in the freezer. They are hard to impossible to catch, and once caught are hard to handle. I don't want to get hurt, so off they go. It's just not worth it anymore. I want to downsize so I can spend more time spinning and weaving. </p><p><br /></p><p>I hope everyone is having/had a good day! Things are getting more interesting by the day out in the big world. I'm glad I live where I do! Well, that's it for now... </p>Ann Keenanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12298587401555306348noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-135089923237522023.post-60042823837516718012024-02-17T14:39:00.000-08:002024-02-17T14:39:55.196-08:00Weaving<p> </p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjmJlD3Hd0wbMHx2vCk0eM9mScWOOpQhQXAIwiq6qkh4PoSpTcZvEYLRtd3UYtW5PMA20ck6awaLuMe9zpsMpay764vrVgVgCKCMrh5gsFIS9SiZXx7mDd_91gMmR1D8Hu8tc3hzQFjaPiRU4jG4ivEKe101ptl-iNWoZoFwEtgVrpPWCtqR-ybmOTGzSY/s2331/20231220_134957.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2331" data-original-width="1890" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjmJlD3Hd0wbMHx2vCk0eM9mScWOOpQhQXAIwiq6qkh4PoSpTcZvEYLRtd3UYtW5PMA20ck6awaLuMe9zpsMpay764vrVgVgCKCMrh5gsFIS9SiZXx7mDd_91gMmR1D8Hu8tc3hzQFjaPiRU4jG4ivEKe101ptl-iNWoZoFwEtgVrpPWCtqR-ybmOTGzSY/s320/20231220_134957.jpg" width="259" /></a></div>I wove a colorful tablecloth for our bistro table and a matching bigger one for our folding table that we use when we have company. I've decided to add a lot more color into our house. I like bright colors, but like most Americans, I use pretty neutral colors in the house. After having a helpxer from India here last fall who told me that it was rather sad how dull everything is in America, houses, furnishings, etc. I decided to embrace my love of color into just about everything in my life. My fiber shed is getting painted this summer with a very bright, wild color scheme. At least I think it will. Could be interesting. :-) My weaving might get brighter more often, too.<p></p><p>We've gone back to a real winter now. Close to a foot of snow and colder temps more like a normal year. The last two days have been bright sunny days. This time of year, sunshine is very welcome!</p><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi7uVanGSqoDXIvjwto0d1F34HbBgOlwVsDRHlI1yMYtxOz_CmaUMkcc99UakxUGXV3dozK1OSVjHh5OA1FI1YhVwDV-dMjnKFkoBzxl9IhEUQeY-TfT0c8VVdqsnCTtrMtoNjKQ187QHc1014g4_fiaEAU4GraNgWCOQnikwG3abCrK4fS2zb5_fiaq9g/s2551/20230408_141132%20-%20Copy.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2244" data-original-width="2551" height="281" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi7uVanGSqoDXIvjwto0d1F34HbBgOlwVsDRHlI1yMYtxOz_CmaUMkcc99UakxUGXV3dozK1OSVjHh5OA1FI1YhVwDV-dMjnKFkoBzxl9IhEUQeY-TfT0c8VVdqsnCTtrMtoNjKQ187QHc1014g4_fiaEAU4GraNgWCOQnikwG3abCrK4fS2zb5_fiaq9g/s320/20230408_141132%20-%20Copy.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><br /> Lily doesn't really fit in this tub very well. It's warm and dry, so she's taking advantage of it to stay out of the mucky hay. Goats are the greatest wasters of hay on the planet. I'll betcha there is at least a ton of it wasted every year around here. Makes for good compost, though. We get a new mountain of it every year when I clean out the pens. Grows great veggies! <p></p><p>Well, that's it for now. I'm going to go out and get some of that sun and water everyone while the faucet is thawed out. </p><p>Hope you all are having a great day!</p>Ann Keenanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12298587401555306348noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-135089923237522023.post-46291825175731522412024-02-13T13:01:00.000-08:002024-02-13T13:01:15.581-08:00First Kids of the Year<p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEga8db0G-e55-SEBVVL04u0Z1eJ1rMPatLFt0y5MuuepvuTCDjN9Ev5p0xl__otY3IZpkijw0FRedodM3TvpjWJkjcuz0ezonJajbIP9lRTMm7HkqCWMClTm0TgLQvH_yQKcGk4VXBVyh4pj9z3JmXT73DvW3mzXhJ_7tVbapd3SeYAOE2SoFEPifRa9qQ/s3024/20240128_095415.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3024" data-original-width="3024" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEga8db0G-e55-SEBVVL04u0Z1eJ1rMPatLFt0y5MuuepvuTCDjN9Ev5p0xl__otY3IZpkijw0FRedodM3TvpjWJkjcuz0ezonJajbIP9lRTMm7HkqCWMClTm0TgLQvH_yQKcGk4VXBVyh4pj9z3JmXT73DvW3mzXhJ_7tVbapd3SeYAOE2SoFEPifRa9qQ/s320/20240128_095415.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>On January 10th of this year, Sprinkles had her first babies, twins. Milo, the top photo, and Jan (because she was born in January). The problem was, Sprinkles came into heat in August and her triplet brothers, who were bucklings, got out and in with her and her mom and sister. Luckily, she was the only one in heat. So, these two are totally inbred. Milo wasn't right from the beginning; he would just stand around and not move much. Jan seemed fine. Sprinkles is a good mom, especially since she is a first-timer. <br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh0EMePnLEFVE-mzNk-1LGwBMJmM8eN2YZxFW6uwO9L7_H7udXNM3FIoS5SfxCJW0PkFpR2b7ELyOSJq0edkUzHFx0z1Fgz-jJbpFI7p86iQCpWO_bQB2Igwru25SqenBZw26Q3PGuL1CpvuSfNszbWlC_v3XNLYe5eYV55vDus9Lm9DywYo5okrZBqqWQ/s1750/20240128_095718.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1556" data-original-width="1750" height="285" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh0EMePnLEFVE-mzNk-1LGwBMJmM8eN2YZxFW6uwO9L7_H7udXNM3FIoS5SfxCJW0PkFpR2b7ELyOSJq0edkUzHFx0z1Fgz-jJbpFI7p86iQCpWO_bQB2Igwru25SqenBZw26Q3PGuL1CpvuSfNszbWlC_v3XNLYe5eYV55vDus9Lm9DywYo5okrZBqqWQ/s320/20240128_095718.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>These two were born on the 10th, and we went into a deep freeze on the 11th. One night it was 30 degrees below zero. For a week I was going out every two hours with a hot water bottle and putting it in with them in their "baby box" day and night. I didn't even sleep in my bed, just dozed in the recliner each night. You might be wondering why I didn't have a heat lamp or bring them inside instead of going that route. We live off-grid, and a heat lamp takes way too much electricity. I figured in the long run; it would be easier to do the hot water bottle. They survived in fine shape. <div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEijSYmHn03l_RkjGfQE5k118Bvh8a9G2YmUPBjkw0v26aOvSgy4hwWQe8UzoksLpSmkU7ZCAe9qsef2d18Lv2ZDnZYnS1pxf-idD5CXHlqxtp8GWVeYujNLstSdIDpKFLdkx1nNdlWJ-efkXtwwXCtmJ23ipAXUojhEqsDBvoXJQaA81SCR1EANFtNxiKU/s2238/20240110_094454.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1953" data-original-width="2238" height="279" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEijSYmHn03l_RkjGfQE5k118Bvh8a9G2YmUPBjkw0v26aOvSgy4hwWQe8UzoksLpSmkU7ZCAe9qsef2d18Lv2ZDnZYnS1pxf-idD5CXHlqxtp8GWVeYujNLstSdIDpKFLdkx1nNdlWJ-efkXtwwXCtmJ23ipAXUojhEqsDBvoXJQaA81SCR1EANFtNxiKU/s320/20240110_094454.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>You can see in this photo; Milo is standing off by himself. He always did that, and when he went to nurse, most of the time he didn't take in much milk. The photo below was on one of the not so cold nights. Sprinkles has her head in by the hot water bottle, and the kids are on each side of her outside. I did move them inside the box after I took this. There is a hay bale in front of half the box to block the cold. Anyway, the kids survived the cold in good shape, with Sprinkles staying warm with her head in the box with them. After the cold snap ended, I had a good night's sleep in my bed again. <br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhAGvS0I-tRlG8tAx77cpefroaEvDaToW9EDUfHj3cYb5IC32kysaSItrflKreoTfDJWZITceOzRBPZADYNR47WVhkPCcNDCFzMms3-KcYFEMwqgvAIMoQ2Z5wg2tleAPk_ZQ5L3C-e3lvBEGWPqhMk2VaaOBQjZwpza5YBFxiI_NFWXvskRuXujDD5mTY/s2340/20240113_062029.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2204" data-original-width="2340" height="301" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhAGvS0I-tRlG8tAx77cpefroaEvDaToW9EDUfHj3cYb5IC32kysaSItrflKreoTfDJWZITceOzRBPZADYNR47WVhkPCcNDCFzMms3-KcYFEMwqgvAIMoQ2Z5wg2tleAPk_ZQ5L3C-e3lvBEGWPqhMk2VaaOBQjZwpza5YBFxiI_NFWXvskRuXujDD5mTY/s320/20240113_062029.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><br />Twenty-one days after they were born, I went out to feed in the morning, and Milo was gone. He had passed away during the night. I figured he would, he was getting weaker by the day. After I found him, I did a necropsy to see what was going on inside of him. He didn't stand a chance, a fluid-filled heart that was quite large, and some strange intestine arrangements. <p></p><p>Jan seems fine, nice and sturdy and full of energy. I think her brain might be wired wrong, she is very flighty and nervous. But, when I do get a hold of her, she calms down and lets me pet her. I just need to pay lots of attention to her every day. Her grandma, Olga, is the same way. In fact, I am tired of dealing with her. Once Sprinkles' sister Toffee has her kids the end of May, Olga is going to freezer camp. I am literally the only person on the planet that can get anywhere near her, and that is only if everything is normal and in place. If there is another person anywhere that she can see, she heads for the hills. Once she is in the milking stand, she's fine, and easy to milk, but getting her there is an ordeal most of the time. She's not the highest producing doe, either. She's got some Boer in her and that made her milk production not as much as a full dairy doe. So, after 7 years of dealing with this, I am done. I can't go anywhere for more than a day trip; I have to be there to milk her. It will be hard to do her in, but at the same time, it will be a relief to be able to have a bit of freedom. </p><p>This is the first time in the 22 years I've been raising goats that I've had kids born in January. Last time, too! Also, the first time I didn't wether the male dairy kids, that won't be happening again, either. Those three went to freezer camp, too. Live and learn.</p><p>Now we are having snow and regular winter temperatures, so all is well. We had an abnormally warm start to the winter; the ground was bare on Christmas Day. That's rare. I am looking forward to Spring and the ground being bare again. Lots of projects coming this year! Especially to do with the goats. Some big changes coming. </p><p>Hope you are having a great day! </p><p> </p>Ann Keenanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12298587401555306348noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-135089923237522023.post-20010227479571743062024-02-09T15:30:00.000-08:002024-02-09T15:30:27.131-08:00Finally, Some Pictures<p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiDGP7c_EgI0DozL3ikepZtxYPmkBZ5L95lmYRrgsFg2JfE8PyFpqfItRtOkJ7sf9NY5X9N3vKCop3ej8jdy7aNLam7HN_ZA_CovbSVOhedgNdv_5NDZFNxIrxXHOzFrOf6la6480RMX3ExYJZGjdkyK6oJf7eKmwCBa6xhyphenhyphenlKuww1pV5AdgLum3GIp4vM/s1657/20240127_112819.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1657" data-original-width="1355" height="273" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiDGP7c_EgI0DozL3ikepZtxYPmkBZ5L95lmYRrgsFg2JfE8PyFpqfItRtOkJ7sf9NY5X9N3vKCop3ej8jdy7aNLam7HN_ZA_CovbSVOhedgNdv_5NDZFNxIrxXHOzFrOf6la6480RMX3ExYJZGjdkyK6oJf7eKmwCBa6xhyphenhyphenlKuww1pV5AdgLum3GIp4vM/w224-h273/20240127_112819.jpg" width="224" /></a></div> Here's a cashmere shawl I wove. Totally handspun and dyed yarns. This is in my Etsy shop, and yes, it's expensive. It's a nice size, 81 inches long and 22 inches wide. It's warm, too.<br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjVbPm-m0Fuj1sz3Ykm_N8kJaOxFYkd5dkjgfG4spBss79tPoBkI7Yq-lMQnNIdI1fNUdDlY5ezADM3YeNLVyBsABHwapXAT2Ef7988tgxTNjr5X00OhWRSBKQhSOApxkJMHDAmP0-ngpXvyg4rr1DTcLCboAMc6Qw9DcZ5jKXjfHoYE1QNcooRZbtNs5o/s2639/20230118_113711.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2639" data-original-width="2227" height="224" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjVbPm-m0Fuj1sz3Ykm_N8kJaOxFYkd5dkjgfG4spBss79tPoBkI7Yq-lMQnNIdI1fNUdDlY5ezADM3YeNLVyBsABHwapXAT2Ef7988tgxTNjr5X00OhWRSBKQhSOApxkJMHDAmP0-ngpXvyg4rr1DTcLCboAMc6Qw9DcZ5jKXjfHoYE1QNcooRZbtNs5o/w189-h224/20230118_113711.jpg" width="189" /></a></div> A Cashmere clasped weft wall hanging I wove, all handspun and hand dyed. This is at a friend's lake cabin. Traded this for a spinning wheel.<br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg8JskgcX-NZdAV3ieHMhTD5VP9kmDKCMzztUM0tRuhQUIsBkpXS-0cCs4DSp_nZkpm06B1S-KioeeF-l7hSu8C-q2h-2PiYplaw7Kg1bIg08gFckyejp9oGr9oNmsOUgzLYrY1oo43oaNMv5dRgUCyCaGbGuU5xu3zgpZfZ4wOesoiVMtSh_3SzVXhxE8/s3024/20221229_132139.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3024" data-original-width="3024" height="224" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg8JskgcX-NZdAV3ieHMhTD5VP9kmDKCMzztUM0tRuhQUIsBkpXS-0cCs4DSp_nZkpm06B1S-KioeeF-l7hSu8C-q2h-2PiYplaw7Kg1bIg08gFckyejp9oGr9oNmsOUgzLYrY1oo43oaNMv5dRgUCyCaGbGuU5xu3zgpZfZ4wOesoiVMtSh_3SzVXhxE8/w224-h224/20221229_132139.jpg" width="224" /></a></div> Another Clasped weft item I wove. Handspun yarn and hand dyed. This is now in London, England. A commission.<br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjv-qSlATdOSrXRH9aXSpyU53X_lDj97-csFwRx_AZBlAxqd8r9W4IHgD0AVbjo9c1IGLdj_XOa3eRgzBi6ReI4AHR5w3a006xwxXQ11myqK8G09wf0n2OmXBN9TuWI3cI0SGHSSCyO8D_idRdcE40cQO9CvYCXlSZCrjsW0mcKLHHPsri3OdhulkaSByA/s2345/20230303_114855.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2105" data-original-width="2345" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjv-qSlATdOSrXRH9aXSpyU53X_lDj97-csFwRx_AZBlAxqd8r9W4IHgD0AVbjo9c1IGLdj_XOa3eRgzBi6ReI4AHR5w3a006xwxXQ11myqK8G09wf0n2OmXBN9TuWI3cI0SGHSSCyO8D_idRdcE40cQO9CvYCXlSZCrjsW0mcKLHHPsri3OdhulkaSByA/w237-h213/20230303_114855.jpg" width="237" /></a></div> A HUGE spinning commission I'm still working on. Should have it all done by the end of May. Southdown wool off 14 sheep. <br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgsGbqW3gUdpgW_qOT0hiuzDey3Zu006cbEXvfQ9S2_aEbH5G8p_8ZqInRL3tsuALJxJ4kBq4z4W2X0_tF2PFbxfSLLYRHaSa-Zx_CRSuzsi4ebXhY_0ioFjQg0YRRE3meO4kgBsmSrsi21aBrZXTfTefBrx_yq8qTB60h4nW7Mh_yq2HS-WCIEtgvryqI/s2738/20230913_131552.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2738" data-original-width="2460" height="222" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgsGbqW3gUdpgW_qOT0hiuzDey3Zu006cbEXvfQ9S2_aEbH5G8p_8ZqInRL3tsuALJxJ4kBq4z4W2X0_tF2PFbxfSLLYRHaSa-Zx_CRSuzsi4ebXhY_0ioFjQg0YRRE3meO4kgBsmSrsi21aBrZXTfTefBrx_yq8qTB60h4nW7Mh_yq2HS-WCIEtgvryqI/w200-h222/20230913_131552.jpg" width="200" /></a></div> A Tencel scarf I wove out of handspun yarn. This was fun.<br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhvk2WV4m2zogPugS27dqoXLemTGtFPvFpS9R5QKxxdyLLxMaH1kH6wDQlVq5-ZQ9VHUw-JkEKp-47eI9hSorgcDo8TY8p-MmQCbZHua7plPuxqchAtpfoKsJpnydmOMkEqi9TzJOj6WfbILXK4m-LJFz_V7onMahtM4avcwUDKSEheUqDH_Wb7DnbhQ4Q/s3024/20231117_160649.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2444" data-original-width="3024" height="184" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhvk2WV4m2zogPugS27dqoXLemTGtFPvFpS9R5QKxxdyLLxMaH1kH6wDQlVq5-ZQ9VHUw-JkEKp-47eI9hSorgcDo8TY8p-MmQCbZHua7plPuxqchAtpfoKsJpnydmOMkEqi9TzJOj6WfbILXK4m-LJFz_V7onMahtM4avcwUDKSEheUqDH_Wb7DnbhQ4Q/w227-h184/20231117_160649.jpg" width="227" /></a></div> Cinnamon and Skippy. It took Cinnamon, the smallest goat on the place, to stand up to Skippy first before any of the other goats would. She was Rocky's buddy, always beside him, and so when he died and we got Skippy last fall, she just accepted him as the new guardian dog. Since he was just a puppy, guarding wasn't (and still isn't) top of his list. He's now 7 months old. Starting to think about actually protecting the place, but not entirely. He's not confident enough yet to be of any real service. He does bark once in a while, but not much. Which is a good thing, for now. He has a very big, deep voice when he does bark. I think once he's an adult, he's going to be an incredible guardian. He is very smart. Understands everything I tell him, catches on to things very fast. And, he's going to be huge! He's a Grand Shepard, which is a mix of Anatolian, Saint Bernard and Mastiff. All giant dogs. Should scare everything and everyone away. If we both survive his puppyhood stage, we'll be set. This morning he crashed into my leg and did some damage, I felt some ripping going on. At least it was below my knee and I can still walk ok. A couple of months ago, he crashed into my knee and threw everything out of whack. I couldn't walk after that one. Had to use crutches for a while. He was trying to get away from Olive the goat, both times. She has it in for him every time he goes in the pen. I told him this morning he has to stay at least 20 feet away from me from now on when we are in the pen. We'll see if that happens. He goes in there while I'm feeding. <p></p><p>Well, that's it for this post. I will be posting a bit more regularly now, with pictures. Have a great day! <br /> </p>Ann Keenanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12298587401555306348noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-135089923237522023.post-68582989082988627542023-12-18T14:32:00.000-08:002023-12-18T14:32:30.418-08:00Time is just flying by!<p> Sorry for not answering the comments. I haven't even looked at this since I wrote the last post. Quinn, I hope your wether is ok. I haven't ever had that happen with any of my goats. </p><p>I still haven't added any pictures on my computer. I just haven't been in a blogging mode at all this fall. I will try to be better next year. Hard to believe it's the end of the year already! Christmas is a week away!</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiRMWLVUodFA2HWewDOMUIbYfQ2NUoyvYbzY7_KzezC8vGLFO7US9UR2ZpC2ghS9taDCeLUcCT4v-2tIKnqWXcwPlQhyphenhyphenvZoHXsXg3MDQ7RuxsCEdnLWN3vyhYwFHhAA5SnuQOP6cBW38fzfu-Ws3NtNXVSfu8f9619Run-0WT8dtHbE84JioaB2CqHe-YE/s2183/20230612_134015.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2183" data-original-width="1869" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiRMWLVUodFA2HWewDOMUIbYfQ2NUoyvYbzY7_KzezC8vGLFO7US9UR2ZpC2ghS9taDCeLUcCT4v-2tIKnqWXcwPlQhyphenhyphenvZoHXsXg3MDQ7RuxsCEdnLWN3vyhYwFHhAA5SnuQOP6cBW38fzfu-Ws3NtNXVSfu8f9619Run-0WT8dtHbE84JioaB2CqHe-YE/s320/20230612_134015.jpg" width="274" /></a></div>On a sad note, we lost Rocky, our other guard dog in October. Here he is with Cinnamon, his best buddy, and Junior, one of the other kids. Cinnamon hung out with him more than the goats, and she really didn't know what to do when he died. When I went out to feed that morning, she came out of the stall where he was yelling and yelling, telling me he was gone. I went in there, and sure enough, he was laying there dead. He went downhill pretty fast. He had an enlarged heart, something myocardiopathy. We did get a new puppy, but he's got a long ways to go before he'll be a guardian. Luckily, the neighbors rescued an older Great pyr this summer, so she's been keeping the predators away all along their property line, which is the direction the predators used to come in from. Skippy only 6 months old. I don't have a picture of him on here yet. He's a Grand Shepard, a mix of Anatolian, St Bernard and Mastiff. He's a fawn color with more of a st bernard face. I have him in the yard instead of in with the goats. Instead of just being with the goats, I'm going back to having a "property protector", so he'll take care of everything. Like Nellie was. He's already been attacked by the adult goats. The kids he's wanting to chase some, so that is not good. It took Cinnamon to stand up to him and butt him in her little way before the adult goats would stand up to him. They ran at first. The dairy goats still run from him, they haven't had any guard dogs over by them since they have a barn that can be closed up.<div><br /></div><div>Dealing with a puppy is a lot of work! I haven't had to do that since Rocky and Cloud 9 years ago. Skippy is a fast learner and knows the word no pretty good. He also sits on command. We're getting there, but this next year will be interesting. I hope we both survive! Skippy is going to be a huge dog, he's already very solid and heavy. He crashed into me trying to get away from one of the goats while we were in the pen feeding just before Thanksgiving, that bungled up my knee pretty good. It's finally good enough I can walk normally and weave and spin again. Still a bit painful, but it is improving slowly but surely. Now I keep an eye on him all the time, since he's not the most coordinated beast yet. Although for his size and age, he's somewhat graceful at times.</div><div><br /></div><div>Well, I hope everyone has a good rest of the year, Happy Holidays, Merry Christmas, and Happy New Year! I'll try to be more consistent in posting next year, and include lots of pictures, but who knows. Time goes by so fast, it seems it's a couple of months between postings! Who knows what next year, or even the rest of this year, will bring. Hang onto your hats!<br /><p><br /></p></div>Ann Keenanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12298587401555306348noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-135089923237522023.post-71895076505200818562023-09-30T15:57:00.000-07:002023-09-30T15:57:18.196-07:00Kids and Weaving<p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj2lZ7W6BqlTPMyL7UTlfssj1IArufzKuEUfswL6blJ36po__JoKsawXYwzWzCSVKEUYtuwWvHA_0WMlhzD-jVrazOESwLiDR-6496-oITTm1PGyGH4Af-QZP5vajwABnYDUC8kDhyphenhyphenl6Gz9X6QM_o4Va41qv1JpnWPgQhnC9dToN9wh0wTD-M5t7-bU8kY/s3024/20230822_101339.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3024" data-original-width="3024" height="277" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj2lZ7W6BqlTPMyL7UTlfssj1IArufzKuEUfswL6blJ36po__JoKsawXYwzWzCSVKEUYtuwWvHA_0WMlhzD-jVrazOESwLiDR-6496-oITTm1PGyGH4Af-QZP5vajwABnYDUC8kDhyphenhyphenl6Gz9X6QM_o4Va41qv1JpnWPgQhnC9dToN9wh0wTD-M5t7-bU8kY/w320-h277/20230822_101339.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><br /> Three of the nine kids born this year in May. First time ever having goats with wattles on their necks. I've always had clean necked goats, but got a buck through a picture without seeing him in person, and his cashmere covered up the wattles. I'm getting used to them. Most of the kids look alike this time. I have a very hard time telling who's who. Junior is the first, and then I think that's Mariah and Curly next. They are waiting for me to load up the hay wheelbarrow, then let them all in to eat on the hay bale while I feed the rest of the herd. I am feeding the big square bales, which are 3 feet by 4 feet by 8 feet in size. Weighing around 1250 lbs. <p></p><p>I have 40 goats right now, counting the dairy crew. Some will be going to freezer camp pretty soon. Remind me to always castrate the boys from the dairy goats. This was the first year I didn't, and boy are they stinky. I don't need any more bucks. Although next year I might be looking for a new cashmere buck. We'll see how the fleece is on these kids come combing time.</p><p>The garden is still going, although it is starting to wind down. Did you know that if you leave the base of the cabbage plant in the ground after cutting off the cabbage, it will grow a circle of little cabbages around the edge and you'll get a whole new crop of baby cabbages, about the size of a baseball, up to a softball? The plant is doing double duty. Can't beat that! Perfect little individual sized meals.</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhkPA3rHrvN5S_yTYC4VILXY8J837k6aDElu19Cd1jZC12Y1A6wuHp_eylr8MtlQ600JfazctvojHQMNgXBEVGOZmTKolkE9RaQC8_oT5XgwkLl8RQl4B8INNIjk-BzulZP_l2sw51SlLIC9mcE1z8hjt1BcdB8uqEwkub6ShMTUrr54y6XuOnvYClz0kY/s2639/20230118_113711.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2639" data-original-width="2227" height="278" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhkPA3rHrvN5S_yTYC4VILXY8J837k6aDElu19Cd1jZC12Y1A6wuHp_eylr8MtlQ600JfazctvojHQMNgXBEVGOZmTKolkE9RaQC8_oT5XgwkLl8RQl4B8INNIjk-BzulZP_l2sw51SlLIC9mcE1z8hjt1BcdB8uqEwkub6ShMTUrr54y6XuOnvYClz0kY/w199-h278/20230118_113711.jpg" width="199" /></a></div><br /><p>Here is a wall hanging I wove earlier this year from my leftover bits of cashmere handspun yarn. |The throw on the chair is also woven from handspun Cashmere. I traded the wall hanging for a spinning wheel. A Louet Victoria. Still have the throw, it is a wonderful thing to wrap up in when I get a little chilly. I really do love weaving. It's funny how it took such a long time to start doing it, I avoided it, said I would never do it, too much math. Now I absolutely love weaving, don't pay a whole lot of attention to the math part, it's not as bad as I thought it would be. I'm still learning how to read a draft. I usually make up my own patterns after looking at something. </p><p>This summer I haven't had much time for spinning or weaving, too many outside projects to do. I have the fleeces from 14 sheep I'm spinning, which is taking a very, very long time. I did warn the owner that it would take me probably a year to get it all done. I think the month of October I will focus on that and crank out a lot of yarn. </p><p>We were without internet since the 12th of September. Had to upgrade the system and the old plan ended on the 12th, we didn't get the new one installed until yesterday. This plan has more data and much faster speeds. Our old equipment was pretty outdated. </p><p>Well, I think that's it for now. Gotta get more pictures onto this computer so I can show you more of what I've been up to the last couple of years... </p>Ann Keenanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12298587401555306348noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-135089923237522023.post-8716078756271121122023-08-20T16:19:00.001-07:002023-08-20T16:19:48.183-07:00Ok, so I wasn't back<p> Now I might be posting more regularly. The goats are all doing well. There were nine kids born this year, only three of which are bucklings, now wethers. The only thing is, the buck I got has wattles, which I didn't see in the pictures I saw of him. (I bought him by the pictures, not seeing him in person first) So now 8 of the kids have wattles. I don't really like those, I like clean necked goats. We'll see if they "grow" on me or not. They don't go against any conformation ratings in the cashmere goat association listing so at least it's not a problem if I were to start showing the goats again. Which probably won't happen anyway. I just need to get over my aversion to the wattles.</p><p>This has been an interesting year so far. I'm done hosting hipcamp, 7 years was a good run. Now I want to do something different. With more neighbors up here, the joy of hosting has left. On to bigger, better things...</p><p>The garden is starting to produce really well. Got a late start planting, but it seems the plants know when to put on their fruit no matter what their size. The pea plants are tiny little things compared to ones in the past, but they are putting on lots of pea pods. We did get a good cauliflower crop, asparagus was plentiful, and the green beans are now coming on. We are even getting strawberries from June bearing plants now, and it's almost the end of August! The carrots are getting bigger. I finally did a good job of thinning them this year, so am looking forward to some good sized carrots in another month. Hopefully nice straight ones, not strangely twisted, gnarly things.</p><p>My old computer crashed, so this new one doesn't have a single photo on it yet to upload onto here. Soon I will get some transferred. I've gotten away from an online presence the last couple of years. Now I think I might get back into it a bit. </p><p>Weaving is fun, I've been making a few things. I have a huge wool spinning commission I'm working on. 14 sheep's worth of wool. That is taking a while to do, what with everything else I've got going on around here. It's easy spinning, so it's fun to do anyway. I did tell the guy that it was going to take months and months to do, and he was okay with that. I am going to attempt to have it all done by the end of this year. If not all, most of it anyway. Then I will have it all done by March for sure, unless something drastic happens.</p><p>Rocky, the LGD is doing well on his own. He's going to be 9 years old in October! Where did that time go? Seems he was just a pup not that long ago. Since we have neighbors on three sides now, the predator load has gone down a lot. They don't come in close to our place much any more. </p><p>Well, next post will have photos, I promise, and it won't be 6 months down the road either. Hope everyone is doing well. </p>Ann Keenanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12298587401555306348noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-135089923237522023.post-39782890709465388952023-02-13T15:22:00.002-08:002023-08-20T12:20:48.331-07:00<p><span style="background-color: white; font-family: Urbanist;">I'm back!!! I might start posting regularly now again. It's been awhile! I've been weaving a lot, doing some spinning, and hand dehairing cashmere. A very time consuming occupation! </span></p><p><span style="background-color: white; font-family: Urbanist;">Since last writing, Cloud has passed away. Rocky is now guarding everyone solo. We have more neighbors, so the predators have moved to less populated areas for the most part. The guineas have decreased. An owl or two got a couple of them, one froze her legs off in December when it got down to -25 degrees. Not sure why she was the only one damaged, she was beside the others up in the tree. They are all fine. We now have 5 guineas is all. </span></p><p><span style="background-color: white; font-family: Urbanist;">The goats are all doing quite well. I've downsized the herd by quite a bit. Counting everyone, there are 30 goats on the place. I have 20 goats that I am harvesting their cashmere from. That's about half or more of what I used to do! But, with feed prices doubling, me getting a bit older, and lots of things going on, having fewer goats is a good thing right now. </span></p><p><span style="background-color: white; font-family: Urbanist;">I'm really enjoying weaving. I think I like that better than spinning and way more than crocheting for sure. I still love to spin, but weaving is the best now. I do get Analisis paralyses when I look at all the colors of yarns I have. So many to choose from, I have a hard time deciding what to do. Then all of a sudden one day, something clicks and a project is created. I've still got my Etsy shop, Wild Mountain Handmade that I have some things listed in. I seem to sell more locally and to the Hipcampers that stay here, than on Etsy. But I do have a few sales. I just did a bit of an update on there and will be adding some handspun yarn again soon. One thing about it, the fiber arts is not a fast modality. It is rather Zen like when you get a rhythm going and things are going well though. </span></p><p><span style="background-color: white; font-family: Urbanist;">The hipcamp thing was a lot slower last year than the previous two years. There are quite a few new sites that are less remote than our place on there now, so I think that is keeping campers away from here. We'll give it another year or two and see what happens. It's been wonderful meeting all the campers and visiting with them. That has been fun! Everyone has been quite nice, and they've kept a clean campsite, so my job cleaning after they leave has been pretty easy. </span></p><p><span style="background-color: white; font-family: Urbanist;">Well, that's the update for now. I'll post again pretty soon with some pictures. Babies will be born starting next month and into April, so there will be pictures of those. What I've woven, too. Have a great day!</span></p>Ann Keenanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12298587401555306348noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-135089923237522023.post-69723301380050316952019-04-28T12:36:00.002-07:002019-04-28T12:36:44.816-07:00Kids<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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Here are the dairy kids, Max is on the bench, his brother Romeo is on the ground beside him, then Bianca is in front, and Buster is the black and tan one with tiny ears. They are all healthy and very active! Max is the friendliest, he comes right up to me to be petted. The other three aren't so sure about it. All four have the same dad, my Kiko buck, with Max and Romeo out of Olga, and Buster and Bianca out of Speckles. <br />
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Timmy the house goat was outside, but now he's back in for a few days till it warms up again. We got 2 inches of snow and down to 22 degrees last night, and it's supposed to stay below freezing at night till Thursday, so he's in till it warms up again. This round he doesn't have free range of the house, he's having to stay in the big kennel with supervised outings. He discovered the house plants, and was getting into all kinds of mischief before I put him outside before. Luckily my husband is on vacation for a couple of weeks, so he's taking care of Timmy. <br />
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Yesterday I got to get away for the day and went up to Libby to their inaugural fiber festival they had. It was fun. Not a whole lot of people, but enough to make it an enjoyable day. <br />
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I am so enjoying weaving! Too bad I waited for so many years to start on it. But, when the timing is right, it happens. <br />
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I'm almost done combing the goats. Only 3 more to go. I am spinning up all the icky cashmere I got back from the mill a few years ago. I decided to spin it into rug yarn and make a cashmere rug out of it! I will post a picture of it when I get it done later this year.<br />
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Well, that's all for now, hope you are having a good spring! Or, fall if you are in the southern hemisphere. <br />
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<br />Ann Keenanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12298587401555306348noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-135089923237522023.post-46400482424716079612019-02-24T12:28:00.000-08:002019-02-24T12:28:08.737-08:00Happenings...Winter struck with a vengeance! After having a pretty mild, mostly snowless early start, February has been somewhat brutal. We have over two feet of snow, it's been really cold for most of it, with brief warm ups that are actually hard on the animals. Going from 40 degrees to 0 degrees in a matter of hours is hard on their little bodies.<br />
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Timmy is still in the house, will be till spring. He's pretty lucky being in where it's nice and warm. His brother is out with the other goats in the cold. His mom ended up dying in the last below 0 weather spell. She was old and weak and just couldn't handle that amount of cold. I had her in a low-roofed house with a lot of hay and straw all around her, but her heart gave out during the night. So now I'm watching Tommy carefully to make sure he is keeping weight on and is okay. Neither Timmy or Tommy are very hearty goats. Tommy is more so than Timmy, though. I sure hope he can survive out there on his own, I don't think my husband, or me, for that matter, could handle two goats in this little house. Timmy is now pretty much trained to pee on the absorbent pads, but he still will poop wherever. He is starting to contain his poops to one or two areas instead of all over, so we are making progress.<br />
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One thing about being off-grid, I can't have any heat lamps or anything like that, it takes too much electricity and would ruin our batteries if one was on all the time. So my goats need to be hardy critters, which, thankfully, cashmeres are. I sure would like to have a heat lamp out there for Tommy, though. He does seem to be doing okay all by himself. He has a low-roofed house with lots of bedding, so he's staying warm. He eats better than Timmy, too.<br />
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My weaving is getting a little better with each thing I make. I'm still chicken to use my cashmere on the floor loom, though. One of these days....<br />
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I'm spinning up all the ruined cashmere from a few years ago into rug yarn and am going to make a rug with it all. I think it will work good for that. I'm spinning it a bit thicker than my normal size, which is a challenge. I'm used to spinning a fine yarn, and making a thick rug yarn takes some concentration! Plus, all the pills and noils in it I'm having a hard time just working those into the yarn. I want to keep stopping and picking them all out, which is impossible. I will post pictures of the rug when I get it done, which will probably be sometime this summer. We have a fox around here! I haven't seen one in years, but it's on the game camera. Cool! I'm not worried about it getting anything, the guard dogs will keep it far away from the chickens and goats. I'm glad it's around, and I hope it stays around. It will be good to catch all the pack rats that migrate to our place every fall. We have a neighbor that has a lot of junk at his place that is a perfect breeding ground for the little beasts. The neighbor doesn't live there, just has a bunch of junk piled up. Between the bobcats, coyotes, and now the fox, I hope the rat population goes way down, or even disappears entirely from here. <br />
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Ann Keenanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12298587401555306348noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-135089923237522023.post-24788147490018619922019-02-08T14:06:00.001-08:002019-02-08T14:06:21.513-08:00House Goat<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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Meet Timmy, a 9 month old cashmere wether kid. He's now in the house till Spring. He came in last December, a very under weight bag of bones. I hadn't been paying too much attention to how thin he was. His mom is my oldest doe, she had twins this last year, and while they weren't the most robust little guys, they were holding their own, at least that's what I thought. I had moved Ming (the mom) and her kids, plus a couple of other does and their kids, plus Inky, the bottle baby/kid into a pen of their own so I could feed them more and they wouldn't be jostled around by the rest of the herd. Everyone but Timmy here improved and were doing fine. Then we got a real cold snap in December, and I noticed Timmy was pretty weak. I actually caught him and felt him and he was a bag of bones. It was hard to see just how skinny he was with all his cashmere. So, I brought him in the house, warmed him up and have had to keep him in here now, since it's cold and snowy outside and he's all used to the warmth in here. <br />
I have him pretty much paper trained now. Good thing Costco has big boxes of the absorbent pads used for puppy training! That's what I use with Timmy. He's learned to pee on one of those, then he gets a treat. Only occasionally does he miss the pad, or go somewhere not even close to the pad. He still poops where ever, but at least he's not peeing everywhere. There will be some new flooring this year, after he's back outside with his mom and brother, who are both doing well. <br />
Having an older kid in the house is way messier than having a bottle baby. There is hay involved, which seems to be getting all over the house. I spend half of every day cleaning up after him. I do have one of those big wire dog cages set up in the bedroom where I feed him his hay and a little bit of grain. But the hay gets stuck on his hair and there are pieces of it everywhere. I will be glad when spring arrives and he's back to being outside! Although he is cute, and he doesn't chew on things like a puppy does. It's kinda like having a puppy in here. It's also kinda like living in a barn with him in here! <br />
He is gaining weight and getting stronger. He's not jumping on things yet, but he can get up on his hind legs to check things out on tables and kitchen counters now. <br />
The blue eye you see is just from the camera flash, he has normal goat eyes and can see quite well.<br />
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February has turned into the month of winter! We have 20 inches of snow and counting, it's snowing all day today. It's been cold, too. Single digits above and below 0. Luckily we are not getting all the wind that the valley is, just a gentle breeze, so we don't have a big wind chill to deal with, too. <br />
Guess I'll go out and start digging out before it gets too deep. have a great weekend! Ann Keenanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12298587401555306348noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-135089923237522023.post-73297909471089521472018-12-06T19:56:00.003-08:002018-12-06T19:56:41.234-08:00New focus for the New Year coming upAfter much thought about it, I've decided to really change the direction of my little business. Since there are only so many hours in a day in which to get things done, I am going to simplify and concentrate my efforts in fewer places and perfect what I do.<br />
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In 2019 I am going to focus on improving both my spinning and my weaving. I won't be doing any needle felting, or crocheting, or at least very, very little of each. Those two crafts are okay, but what I really, really love to do is spin yarn, and now weave. So those are the two crafts I am going to do from now on. <br />
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I also want to get this farm really looking nice, get my flower gardens re-done and expanded. The goats are going to get more care next year, and I am going to ride my horse a little! The last few years I've been trying to do too much and therefore, nothing was done well. Since my husband is the one working off the farm to pay the household bills, I stay home and keep the place going. My income only comes from what I can make and sell. And that has to be enough to buy all the animal's feed and care, plus any supplies I need, etc. I've been falling a bit short every year, so I really need to concentrate on making things that people want and need, like kitchen towels, wearable accessories, etc.. Kitchen items out of cotton and or linen, and cashmere, silk, and combinations of those for scarves and shawls. Once in a while there will be something made out of wool or even acrylic for those people allergic to wool or cashmere.<br />
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So be watching for changes to come to my website soon! I have changed up a few things already, but I'm thinking of overhauling the whole thing. Any ideas for improvements would be appreciated!<br />
Thanks! Ann Keenanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12298587401555306348noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-135089923237522023.post-6316430533303240052018-12-01T13:12:00.000-08:002018-12-06T19:37:37.565-08:00Having fun weaving<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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Here are some of my weavings. The top one is a silk cashmere scarf. I sold that.<br />
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This one is a yak/silk blend scarf, with the warp being commercial silk yarn, and the weft is some yak/silk that I spun up. I was a bit nervous using this nice handspun yarn in my second scarf made from handspun, but it turned out beautifully and is for sale on my website.<br />
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This third one is the first one I wove out of all my handspun cashmere, both warp and weft. It's a nice dense (translate very warm!) short scarf perfect for tucking into the open collar of a jacket to keep you toasty warm. It too is for sale on my website. There are a few other items on there also. All have a holiday discounted price. <a href="http://www.pnfcashmeres.com/">My website</a><br />
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We are having a mild winter, compared to last year. Only a little over an inch of snow on the ground, which came last night and today. I guess since it's the first of December, a little snow is in order.<br />
November was quite the month physically, for me. The first week I slipped and fell flat out on my back. That actually re-aligned my entire spine, I felt pops and shifts all the way up and down. The second week I had a metal t-post for fencing fall over and hit me square on the bridge of my nose. I did not even see it coming. That hurt! Thank Heavens it didn't hit either of my eyes or break something! Third week I pulled a groin muscle reaching with my leg and foot over to let the friction brake on my floor loom loose. That only lasted a day and a half. Then I fell asleep at my computer and hyper stretched my neck as my chin went onto my chest, and totally froze everything. I'm still recovering from that. I went to an acupuncturist on Thursday, which helped immensely. I'm almost back to normal. Except I can't turn my head to the left or right. I have another appointment on Wednesday coming up, which should get me completely flexible again. December has got to be an easier month on me!<br />
All but one doe who I'm waiting on, are now bred. I only bred 7 does this year. I don't need a bunch of new goats next year, I have too many things going on to take proper care of a big herd now.<br />
I hope everyone has a wonderful Holiday Season this year! Ann Keenanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12298587401555306348noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-135089923237522023.post-44358142589096430552018-11-16T20:23:00.001-08:002018-11-16T20:23:24.067-08:00Almost Thanksgiving alreadyMan, this year sure has gone by fast! T-day is next week! We just have a little bit of snow on the ground in places. There is a lot of bare ground now. Sunshine is in the forecast from now until Thursday, when there is a slight chance of a little snow shower. The forest service road is icy in a couple of places. I had the studded snow tires put on Wednesday, but when I went down today, the truck still slid a bit in a couple of places, and I was going slowly. Luckily it's only a couple of short sections that have ice, the rest is pretty bare. <br />
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We got the puddle/pond filled in with gravel! It is sooo nice to drive through there without having to go through water, which would be there now, if it wasn't filled in. The neighbors pitched in and helped pay for it, too, which was nice. Now when we have hipcampers next spring, they can get to our place with no problem, in any kind of vehicle. <br />
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Today I put some plastic up around the top section of the hayshed where the plywood didn't quite reach the top, and also put a couple of tarps over the two openings so when it does snow and blow, the whole shed won't get covered in a layer of snow in there. That will also keep it from being a wind tunnel in there whenever the wind blows. My dream is to have a real barn one of these days! Next project is to rebuild the west wall in the animal part of the shed so there is more room in there for the horse. Since my husband seems to slide backwards down our driveway every year and take out a portion of the fence, tomorrow we are going to take the whole fence down and move it back behind the line of trees so that doesn't happen any more. My poor truck is looking pretty beat up. <br />
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My weaving is improving little by little. For the rest of the month I need to focus on getting 9 Christmas ornament bears needle felted for a couple of orders I have for them. Then it's back to weaving and spinning cashmere!<br />
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My thoughts and prayers go out to the people and animals in the path of the wildfires burning in California. Seems every year CA either gets mudslides and floods, or more often than not, forest and wild fires! It makes me think we have to do some more thinning around our place so if/when we get a forest fire out here, we will survive it! We've done a bunch of thinning, but the trees have grown quite a bit in the 5 years since the first area was thinned, and there are some more trees that need to come out in that area. Since we are supposed to have a drier, milder winter this year, I think we should be doing that all winter so we are prepared for next summer. All the surrounding land is thickly forested, so we need to have a good buffer zone around our perimeter to counteract that if we do have a fire up here.<br />
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If you would like to see lots of pictures of the goings on around the farm, please check out my Instagram feed @cashmereannie. I have over 1000 pictures on there now. <br />
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Happy Thanksgiving to all the Americans reading this!Ann Keenanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12298587401555306348noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-135089923237522023.post-76653616160657873032018-10-25T21:25:00.001-07:002018-10-25T21:25:53.140-07:00Fall musings<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
Time to downsize the buck population around here. Moonshine and his son Thunder are looking for new homes. They are related too closely to 99% of the does here, so I can't use them. They need a new batch of girls to go to. Moonshine is only 3 years old, and Thunder is just a yearling. He does need his feet trimmed, which I will don my coveralls to do so I don't end up stinking like him. </div>
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I made 3 of these "farmhouse" towels recently on my rigid heddle loom. They turned out quite well. I'm in the process of making a new warp for my floor loom and using the warping board for the first time to do it. So far it's working out pretty good. As long as I remember which way to go around the pegs at the cross, I'll be okay. Once nice thing about having a sectional warp beam is I only have to do 48 threads at a time. Each section gets wound on separately, so I think I'll be okay with this! I must say, warping a rigid heddle loom is much faster and easier I think. :-)<br />
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We are, after 24 years, finally getting the driveway graveled!! This year is mainly filling in the big puddle/pond we have to drive through every spring. No more having to drive through water! Yay!! Even though we are supposed to have a warmer and drier winter than last (thank heavens!) I still think we will have enough snow that in the spring there will be standing water, at least for a little while. But, not in the driveway! That is going to be so nice!! I will post a picture or two after it's all done. If you follow me on Instagram @cashmereannie you can see in progress photos, plus about a thousand other pictures of happenings on the place. <br />
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Jimmy, the boer/nubian buck I had went to a new home and batch of girls this week. It is so much quieter and less smelly around here now that he's gone! He was the noisiest buck I've ever had. He makes some pretty strange sounds when in rut. :-) He is also a very manageable guy. Even in full rut, with a doe in season, he let me put his collar and leash on, lead him through the pen, down the driveway, and he jumped right in the back of the truck to eat his little grain treat I had for him. Then when we got to the veterinary to get his blood drawn, he was patiently standing around waiting for over a half hour without making a fuss, and stood perfectly still while the needle poked into his neck and the blood was extracted. Then when we got to his new place, he jumped out and walked beside the new owner to his new pen, taking in everything calmly and curiously. Too bad I couldn't use him around here anymore, there aren't too many bucks that calm and easy going out there! None of my cashmere boys have been, anyway.<br />
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I am now the president of our local weavers and spinners guild for next year! This could be interesting. I have a really good vice-president, so between her and I it should be a fun year. The rest of the board is very competent, too, so I will have an easy job, I think.<br />
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Well, that's it for this session. Hope you are having a great autumn and winter won't be too hard on you, wherever you are. I am seeing the east is supposed to have a bad winter this year, so I hope it isn't overwhelming to anyone!Ann Keenanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12298587401555306348noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-135089923237522023.post-86651975755640643852018-09-26T20:53:00.001-07:002018-09-26T20:53:29.577-07:00Bye, Bye FacebookI feel so good right now! I've been thinking about leaving facebook for a while now, and today my account got hacked, which was the last straw, so I deleted my accounts. I'm on Instagram @cashmereannie, I have my website, email, phone/text if anyone wants to contact me. Now I won't be wasting so much useless time, and will be more productive on what really needs doing around here! I might even start posting on my Youtube channel and make some useful content on there. :-) I think I might get serious on Pinterest, too. We'll see. Anyway, Bye, Bye Facebook!Ann Keenanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12298587401555306348noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-135089923237522023.post-89310229183664564132018-09-26T13:03:00.001-07:002018-09-26T13:03:09.988-07:00Autumn is here!<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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Autumn is here, my favorite time of the year! The fall colors are pretty, the bugs are disappearing, the temps have cooled off, it's a great time of the year.</div>
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Pretty sunsets, which happen all year, actually.<br />
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The last of the flowers in bloom, they make me happy every time I walk by here.<br />
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The onion harvest this year. Not a bad one at all. I made an onion pie last night and it was quite tasty!<br />
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And most exciting, I got a floor loom! A four-shaft older Leclerc Nilus. I am having fun exploring all the possibilities with it. This is my first sample. I got the loom at an estate sale, along with a rather substantial stash of yarn to go with it, plus some other fiber related items and books. Quite a haul! The loom hadn't been used in quite a few years, the woman had been dead for a good two years, and she hadn't been able to use it for a while before she died. It needed a good cleaning, and it was ready to go. In the yarn stash I found some already chained warps, so I decided to start with one of those, and use the tie-up she had on the treadles as is. Since I don't know what I'm doing on this yet, I decided that would be a good way to go. Turns out it was set up as a twill, and I really didn't warp the loom right. It has a sectional beam, and I didn't know that was done differently than a regular beam, so I didn't get enough of the threads on there to begin with. I was wondering why there were left over bundles, now I know. :-) But, by the time I figured that out, I was too far along to unwarp and start over, so I went with it. It's okay, but I know what to do a bit better for next time. It's a 15 yard warp, so I have lots of sampling to do with it yet! I think I will re-tie the treadles in a different way and see what happens. So much to learn!<br />
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This is from a person who said not too long ago, "I will never take up weaving, it doesn't interest me at all, the warping is way too hard". Ha! Never say never. It was strange, I went over to a friend's house that has a floor loom and was helping her tie up her treadles and get it ready for weaving, and the fear seemed to melt away and everything became an interesting challenge to figure out and do. So, here I am, with both a rigid heddle loom and a floor loom. Once I get a studio so I have room for everything, I will probably get a table loom, too! I'm going deep down the rabbit hole with this! Our little 765 square foot house has been taken over by my fiber things. We don't have a living room anymore, the looms have claimed that. Every room is half full of fiber related things. I think the kitchen is the only room that doesn't have something related to fiber in it at all times. I do wash fleeces and dye yarn in there, though. I just get everything cleaned out and up before I do any cooking of food. Anyway, I really, really need a fiber studio so I can everything in one place and we can have the house back! <br />
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It's looking like we are finally, after 24 years of living up here, going to get the puddle/pond in the driveway filled in and the driveway graveled!!!! No more lake to drive through in the spring! It won't be so dusty, either. The dirt around here turns to talcum powder when it's dry, so everything is thickly coated in dust. It turns to slime when it's wet, too. Gravel is way overdue! The one new neighbor is willing to pitch in to get it done, so away we go. Before this, nobody else wanted to spend the money to get it fixed, even though all our lives would be much better and easier with it done. Now finally someone besides us is willing to do it.<br />
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Anyway, happy fall to everyone! Ann Keenanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12298587401555306348noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-135089923237522023.post-39819749410924881102018-08-27T21:13:00.002-07:002018-08-27T21:13:39.241-07:00A little rain!We finally got a little rain overnight! 1/4 of an inch. It was quite chilly today, one can tell summer is on it's way out. The air is clean today. No smoke here for the first time in weeks. I have the wood stove going. The heat from it feels good. It was nice today to be outside with no yellow jackets around!<br />
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A week ago last Saturday, I got stung right in the inner wrist on my blood vein by a yellow jacket. The venom got main-lined into my bloodstream and I had an interesting reaction to it. I was in the middle of doing chores, luckily I had finished with most and only had the dairy goats to feed and milk, and the eggs to gather. After a couple of minutes, I started itching and burning like mad. I went in the house and looked in the mirror and saw I was getting hives all over me! I put some of my magic lotion on that, and it took care of the burning and itching. Then I decided to soak my wrist in some Epsom salts to see if that would draw out the venom a bit. As I was doing that, I all of a sudden got quite dizzy, the world started to fade around the edges. I barely made it to the recliner, where I kicked back and either passed out or fell asleep for a bit. I had a weird whooshing/ringing in my ears, too. I sent up a prayer for the healing angels to come down and remove the toxin from me. I checked in with muscle testing to see if I was dying. It said I wasn't, that I would be better and able to milk the goats at the proper time, and that I would be fine by the time John got home. Since I wasn't going to die, I decided to just deep dive into the experience and see what happened. It was an interesting experience, for sure. When I came to, I felt good enough to go milk, etc. By the time John got home at 11 pm, I was feeling pretty much back to normal, except for my forearm was very swollen and itching like mad. The hives were completely gone, couldn't even tell I had had them. I think I was "out of it" for about 15 to 20 minutes. The next day my arm was still really swollen, it looked deformed. By Tuesday, it was back to normal and everything is good again. I've been stung twice more since then with no reaction at all. Those yellow jackets are mean little buggers! All the traps, ammonia water, etc, is finally starting to noticeably thin out their numbers. They still are plentiful around any water source, but are gradually getting out of the garden area. The hum isn't nearly as loud as it was a month ago. I also got stung by a Bald Faced hornet on the back of my neck. Except for the initial sting, that got no reaction at all. Not even very painful. Seems every year we get some kind of pest/plague around here. Last year it was rodents, this year buzzing beasts. Deer have been plentiful in past years. Stink bugs. Always something. At least it's only one kind at a time! <br />
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The hay shed is torn down and the new section put up. It looks so much better. We have decided to add on one more section again for the ATV and trailers that go with it. The hay bales need a bit longer space to fit in, so one end won't be out in the weather. <br />
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The Hipcamp thing went well this year. I think we are done for the year now. We don't have any more bookings, and it's getting late enough in the year, that I doubt anyone will come now. It was fun meeting all of them and visiting with them a bit. All were very nice, and left clean campsites. The extra income came in very handy, too! And, if there hadn't been yet another fire in Glacier Park that closed down the west side, we might have had one or two more campers. Oh well. Hope next year there aren't any fires anywhere!<br />
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Well, back to needle felting 12 little bears for an order I got. I'm almost done with the 4th one, so I will finish that tonight, and work again on them tomorrow. Ann Keenanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12298587401555306348noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-135089923237522023.post-78719416271543620742018-08-18T16:39:00.001-07:002018-08-18T16:39:23.429-07:00Some pictures<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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The poles from the roof of the hay shed. Going to make some great firewood!</div>
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Almost done tearing things down. As you can see, things are leaning a bit. So much clean up to do! Out of destruction comes a new, nicer set-up. It just takes a lot of work to get there!<br />
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The porch garden this year. Flowers are so cheerful.<br />
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A couple of the garden beds. The cabbage is doing well this year!<br />
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The last and my favorite, tree lily to bloom this year. I love this yellow color!<br />
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<br />Ann Keenanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12298587401555306348noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-135089923237522023.post-78760183250028989112018-08-18T16:03:00.000-07:002018-08-18T16:03:25.604-07:00So SmokeyThis seems to be the norm for summers now. About August we get forest fires going and then get smoked out. Seems the whole West is on fire again this year. I really feel for everyone being burned out. I am so glad we did the major thinning around here that we did. I feel a bit safer now. <br />
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Despite the heat and dryness, the garden is doing well. Zucchini is producing quite a lot, after waiting so long for the first one to grow, they are coming on strong now! We will be getting a second crop of peas this fall. Did you know that if you don't pull up the pea plants after the first harvest, they will produce more again in about a month or so after the first crop? Most of the plant dies off, but there is a little new growth that comes on and produces a new crop of peas. Not the prettiest plants in the garden, but they have food on them!<br />
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The yellow jackets are still around in droves. We found a nest when we tore down the hay shed that was quite large. Got rid of that, but it didn't seem to make much of a dent. Then I put out water with ammonia in it, that kills some. I put that up off the ground so the toads don't get into it. I have 6 of those yellow traps set out, those are catching a lot, but there still are thousands. I don't know where the nests are, but man, they keep coming! The hornets have thinned way down. There was a large nest way up in an Aspen tree down by the hipcamp site that we got rid of. That seemed to help a lot. There are still a few, but not nearly as many. <br />
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The major project for this year is tearing down the hay shed that is rotting away. Every post is rotted, so the whole thing won't survive another winter. We tore down the majority of it, up to the combing room. We re-enforced that and kept it up, but everything else came down. Now I am going to add a smaller addition to house the straw and the one big bale of hay I get at a time these days. It's amazing how much stuff accumulates around here under roofs. John made a dump run yesterday with all the stuff that wasn't needed, and was pretty much just junk that was stored in the shed. Lots of wasted space. I built it back when I was getting small bales of hay, 780 a year. Now that I'm getting the big bales, I don't need all that room. Plus the dehairing room was in there when I had the machine, too. Now, I'm just adding a 10 foot by 18 foot addition onto the combing room to keep the straw dry, and to hold the bale of hay. It should work good. Then we will have a lot more parking room in the driveway, too. Room for more snow. Things get a bit tight around here when we have winters with a lot of snow. I'll post pictures soon of all the changes. Ann Keenanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12298587401555306348noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-135089923237522023.post-65503063950864305962018-08-07T16:48:00.001-07:002018-08-07T16:48:49.478-07:00Life in the woods<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
Life is always interesting when you live in the woods. Critters of all kinds and incidents of all kinds are always a possibility. For instance, this little toad was on our freezer one morning. How it got there, I have no idea. The freezer is in our porch, which is fully enclosed. I put it back outside in the front flower garden where it could hide quite well. </div>
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This bobcat was caught on the game camera the other day. That would explain all the barking the dogs have been doing lately. Glad we have the dogs to keep critters like this away from the goats and chickens. <br />
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We are being taken over by Yellow Jackets and hornets this year. They haven't been this bad in a good 10 years. There are literally thousands of them in the garden. They aren't stinging me at all, just going after the moisture in the grass and veggies. They aren't eating any of the raspberries, or any vegetable, but going out there is a bit nerve-wracking. I still harvest things, I just don't look too closely at my surroundings, I concentrate on what I'm harvesting. :-)<br />
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On Saturday I witnessed an interesting happening. I heard a ground squirrel squeaking quite loudly and harshly up on the hill behind the house. I went up to investigate, and here was a weasel killing it! A raven was watching the whole thing, till I came along, then it flew off. The weasel ignored me for the most part, I was about 50 feet away and inside the fence. The squirrel was bigger than the weasel, but the weasel won, eventually. I left, so I don't know what happened, if the raven came back and got it, or the weasel got to keep his prize. I hope it sticks around and gets rid of all the ground squirrels! That would be nice. It would eat well, and we would be rid of the pests. They have started getting in the garden a little. Ate the lettuce, and some of the carrot and radish tops. The lettuce was past it's prime anyway, we only lost a couple of meals of that. The roots are still there on the carrots and radishes, so we'll still get those.<br />
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We got some excellent heads of cauliflower this year! The first time in history that we got actual heads that were big enough to do something with. The variety of broccoli John planted didn't grow well, so that was pretty much a wash. Got a couple of quarts frozen, but that was it. Ate a few meals fresh, but didn't get enough to go through winter with. <br />
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We haven't had a decent rain in over a month. It is quite dry and hot outside. Everything except the garden is turning brown. I think we are in stage 1 fire restrictions now. Parts of the country are getting way more than enough rain, and other parts aren't getting any. It sure will be nice when the planet balances out and we have moderate weather everywhere again. That might not happen for many years, but one day it will.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjElRqaKKxXxWqxnFfGpGQYU1hkpepMjAd_hipFw7rpUQHPS0m6yPb7T1-ba0t-PWfG1kPe-j6d1LalCXtSkJ76ShzrGBpSdACtASABLgXfCTfU-xCiw4qaNLpVDa26gONZEeynF0LXQSY/s1600/IMG_20180709_102849_090.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1600" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjElRqaKKxXxWqxnFfGpGQYU1hkpepMjAd_hipFw7rpUQHPS0m6yPb7T1-ba0t-PWfG1kPe-j6d1LalCXtSkJ76ShzrGBpSdACtASABLgXfCTfU-xCiw4qaNLpVDa26gONZEeynF0LXQSY/s320/IMG_20180709_102849_090.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
We also had a little bat get in the house. Not sure how that happened, either. John took his little aquarium fish net and put it over it and gently carried it outside and let it crawl out and fly away. Life is always interesting around here! Ann Keenanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12298587401555306348noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-135089923237522023.post-27235732555928995592018-07-02T21:06:00.001-07:002018-07-02T21:06:16.234-07:00Is it really July already?!<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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My new fiber medium! I've taken up weaving on a rigid heddle loom and I love it! I like it better than crocheting by a long ways. I will still do some crocheting, but this is now my main thing. <br />
I haven't done any needle felting for a long time, I think I've lost my enthusiasm for that almost entirely. I still have a lot of cashmere that isn't good for spinning, so I will get back into felting pretty soon.<br />
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This table runner (not a very good picture) is made out of 3/2 mercerized cotton. Trying different pick up stick patterns. Very fun!<br />
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This is a linen washcloth I made. I made three of them, slightly different patterns with each one. I'm using this one and I love it! Linen is a wonderful feeling fabric to use on one's face. <br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhP8LSuXwpj0KCQilRRwwf6HzP6aBKnhv0aZKjPrxe2New0w49MzWqawPVvs_J4qll9bKpbZNepNxhMdfgjzHAEsg1L_8AJAr0V2Hms0jCUKF30sEbLUlPsO_Uw4y2F-hKbLoeJ3xvJxis/s1600/20180624_180142-1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1102" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhP8LSuXwpj0KCQilRRwwf6HzP6aBKnhv0aZKjPrxe2New0w49MzWqawPVvs_J4qll9bKpbZNepNxhMdfgjzHAEsg1L_8AJAr0V2Hms0jCUKF30sEbLUlPsO_Uw4y2F-hKbLoeJ3xvJxis/s320/20180624_180142-1.jpg" width="220" /></a></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjQuEMvKAa1uG6m43djRZ8S4ambsWGB9kNEY_bN0QRbIH4K0jE2zL1Q3Bq9tyROVK-I8NfWpa-OEQAtIMbF8y5Men8hSsMjqfVVZn-j1yQQBUS06mvrCXaikfTeULBxucAhJbIHc87SO8U/s1600/IMG_20180623_215451_985.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1080" data-original-width="1080" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjQuEMvKAa1uG6m43djRZ8S4ambsWGB9kNEY_bN0QRbIH4K0jE2zL1Q3Bq9tyROVK-I8NfWpa-OEQAtIMbF8y5Men8hSsMjqfVVZn-j1yQQBUS06mvrCXaikfTeULBxucAhJbIHc87SO8U/s320/IMG_20180623_215451_985.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
This one is the same color as the one above, but for some reason it doesn't show that in this picture. I think I will be weaving some more of these and maybe making a gift set with a bar of my goat milk soap included. Or maybe get really fancy and make a face towel, washcloth and bar of soap in a set. What do you all think?<br />
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This is a table runner I made out of 5/2 perle cotton. I used some lace techniques on this one. <br />
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This is a table runner and 4 placemat set I made. My table isn't big enough to spread it out properly. The table runner is 41 inches long. I need a rectangular table to set it up properly. This is made out of cotton, too, although I'm not sure of the size. More pick up stick techniques. <br />
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I'm re-doing my website and changing the pages, etc, to better serve my new direction I'm heading in. It's a work in progress right now. I do have a newsletter sign up form on the home page if you'd like to sign up to receive twice monthly updates about happenings on the farm and new creations I'm making, with some behind the scenes photos. I'll start sending that out the middle of this month. There will probably be some special deals occasionally for my newsletter subscribers.<br />
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I hope you all are having a good start to your summer/winter. Happy 4th to those in the USA! Ann Keenanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12298587401555306348noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-135089923237522023.post-5580850399954681612018-04-12T21:05:00.001-07:002018-04-12T21:05:05.679-07:00The winter that doesn't want to end We got another 2 inches of snow today. Just when I thought spring might really be here, it was not to be. The baby goats were not happy. Speaking of which, there are 13 kids now, with 4 more does due the end of April and into May. I don't have any pictures on my computer yet, they are all on my phone. I do have plenty of pictures on my Instagram page @cashmereannie, if you have an Instagram account. <br />
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I got one box of my dehaired cashmere back. It is nice! I've spun up one ounce so far. Weaving has taken over my interests for the moment. On a rigid heddle loom, but it sure is fun. I am taking a beginning weaving workshop next week end to learn how to use a tabletop 4 harness loom. I don't have room for a tabletop or any other loom in this house. Acquiring one will have to wait till after my fiber studio is up and running. Then I'll have room for a few more fiber tools, and, we will have the living room back! My fibery stuff has pretty much taken over the whole house now. The husband is finally getting on board with the idea that I really do need a fiber studio so I can move out of the house and get my stuff all in one place, organized and easy to find!<br />
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If the snow ever does melt (there is still over a foot of it on the ground), I will be able to get started on clean up and organizing the homestead. Lots of projects planned for this summer! <br />
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One of these days I really will get some pictures on here of the kids and everything else that's worthy around here! Ann Keenanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12298587401555306348noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-135089923237522023.post-61419117542397777372018-02-12T21:19:00.002-08:002018-02-12T21:19:32.918-08:00New things for the new year!I haven't had internet service for almost a month. Now we got it last Friday. Expensive, but it's working great so far. Way faster than the old internet service we used to have! I also got a new "refurbished" computer with Windows 10 on it. I had Windows 7 before, so this is taking some getting used to! There are all sorts of differences, some of which I haven't figured out yet. <br />
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My horse Lark is doing great. I can hardly wait till the snow is gone and it warms up so I can really start riding her! She is such a pretty girl. <br />
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We keep getting warm spells followed by cold snowy spells. Our road is pretty narrow as usual for this time of year. At least this year all the neighbors are working together to keep it open. Tomorrow I will be going out and clearing out the turnouts again. We had quite a storm last Thursday with about 8 inches of snow. Then it got down to the single digits, so I didn't go out on the atv to do any plowing. It is just too cold for me to do that any more. Tomorrow it's supposed to be warmer and sunny, so I will be able to go out without freezing to death. The road is 4 miles long, and by the time I'm heading home, I am really cold, even when it's warmer out. I put on as many layers as I can and still be able to move, so I'm warm for most of the time, but the last mile I always get quite chilled. Good thing the house is nice and warm! I huddle up to the wood stove and warm right up again. <br />
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No babies yet. The first ones are due around the 25th of March. Hopefully it's warmed up and the snow is gone by then! It's going to be interesting what comes out this year. Jimmy the Boer/Nubian buck I have, got out and bred more does than I realized back in October. So there is going to be an interesting mix of Cashmere, Boer, and Nubian kids out there. Could be a good thing, or not. We'll see! Might end up sending some to the auction as meat goats. <br />
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I've taken up weaving! I got a rigid heddle loom for Christmas. I am really having fun with it, and am making all sorts of fun things. I will be launching a Spring Collection in my Etsy shop in March. All sorts of good things will be available! Stay tuned! Ann Keenanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12298587401555306348noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-135089923237522023.post-81618414387786417772018-01-01T14:38:00.000-08:002018-01-01T14:38:38.551-08:00Happy New Year!2018 is a new year for a new me. I am changing a lot of things in my life and business this year. Restructuring a lot. Last year was not the best year I've ever had, it was one of the worst, financially. The needle felting made me the most money, the crocheting the least, none of which even came close to breaking even, let alone make a profit.<br />
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*There were some good things last year. The goats were healthy all year long. I got a good cashmere harvest off them, which I just got sent off to be dehaired the week before Christmas. I'll get that back just about the time I finish combing out this years' harvest. <br />
*I was/am the winter president of the weavers and spinners guild I belong to. Not sure how good a job I'm doing, but they wanted me to do it again this year, so I must be okay at it. <br />
*We had a good pumpkin harvest out of the garden. There are still 4 left!<br />
*I signed us up for Hip Camp, we have two campsites on our place. Had a couple of campers a week until the fires and smoke ran all the tourists away in late August and September. Hopefully we'll have a steady stream of campers this year. We got a late start on it, I only signed up in July.<br />
*We had some great helpxers last year! Hope to get some more this year. Lots of projects to do, as usual.<br />
*I got an Arabian horse again!! I can hardly wait till spring to start riding her. I need to sell my old saddle and get one that fits her, first. I have the saddle at a saddle shop in Kalispell on consignment. Hope it sells before March!!<br />
*I'm learning how to weave! My Christmas present this year is a 28" Ashford Knitters Loom, which is a folding rigid heddle loom. John ordered it the day after Christmas. I have always said I would never ever take up weaving, the warping was too complicated and involved. Then I found out about rigid heddle looms and I got an urge to check those out. I borrowed one from a friend for a month, then rented the guild's loom, and now am waiting for mine to arrive sometime between the 4th and 9th of this month. I can hardly wait! I got addicted to weaving right away. I've made 9 projects so far. Scarves and a little bag to hold my sunglasses. I don't know if I will ever go beyond a rigid heddle or not. I want to master that before expanding to anything bigger. I will need a craft studio before I get anything bigger anyway. There is barely room in this house for a rigid heddle one! I am encroaching farther into the living room as it is. We got rid of the couch a couple of months ago, now there are only two recliners in there. :-) When I set up the folding table to warp the loom on, it takes up the whole living room area. Yes, we have a very small house! <br />
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2018 is going to be a year to get things done around here. I am building a craft studio starting as soon as the snow is gone and the ground has dried out a bit. That is the first project, and we will expand from there.<br />
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May this year be the best year yet, for all of us!!Ann Keenanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12298587401555306348noreply@blogger.com0